U.S. patent application number 15/804672 was filed with the patent office on 2018-03-08 for networked personal video storage and delivery.
This patent application is currently assigned to Sling Media Inc.. The applicant listed for this patent is Sling Media Inc.. Invention is credited to Padmanabha R. Rao.
Application Number | 20180070124 15/804672 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 54356183 |
Filed Date | 2018-03-08 |
United States Patent
Application |
20180070124 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Rao; Padmanabha R. |
March 8, 2018 |
NETWORKED PERSONAL VIDEO STORAGE AND DELIVERY
Abstract
A portable video delivery device includes data storage, a secure
processor, and a wireless network interface that acts as an access
point for a secure personal wireless network. Transcoded media
files are stored in the data storage so that the portable device
maintains a library of stored media programs that can be carried
along with the user during commuting, travel and/or other
activities. To playback the stored programming, other media player
devices use the personal wireless network to securely connect to
the portable device and to obtain previously-transcoded content
from the data storage of the device.
Inventors: |
Rao; Padmanabha R.; (Palo
Alto, CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Sling Media Inc. |
Foster City |
CA |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
Sling Media Inc.
Foster City
CA
|
Family ID: |
54356183 |
Appl. No.: |
15/804672 |
Filed: |
November 6, 2017 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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15221922 |
Jul 28, 2016 |
9813750 |
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15804672 |
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15057390 |
Mar 1, 2016 |
9479816 |
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15221922 |
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14266232 |
Apr 30, 2014 |
9307289 |
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15057390 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04N 21/41407 20130101;
H04N 21/43637 20130101; H04N 21/4627 20130101; H04N 21/4405
20130101; H04N 21/440218 20130101; H04N 21/4363 20130101; H04N
21/4126 20130101; H04N 21/440236 20130101; H04N 21/43622 20130101;
H04N 21/4147 20130101; H04N 21/4402 20130101; H04N 21/4367
20130101; H04N 21/4516 20130101; H04N 21/43632 20130101 |
International
Class: |
H04N 21/4147 20060101
H04N021/4147; H04N 21/41 20060101 H04N021/41; H04N 21/4363 20060101
H04N021/4363; H04N 21/4627 20060101 H04N021/4627; H04N 21/4402
20060101 H04N021/4402; H04N 21/414 20060101 H04N021/414; H04N
21/4405 20060101 H04N021/4405; H04N 21/45 20060101 H04N021/45; H04N
21/4367 20060101 H04N021/4367; H04N 21/436 20060101
H04N021/436 |
Claims
1. A portable device to deliver video content to at least one media
player device, the portable data processing system comprising: a
transcoder configured to receive video content and to transcode the
received video content into a format that is suitable for delivery
to the at least one media player device over a personal wireless
network; a data interface; a data storage configured to store the
transcoded video content; a wireless network interface configured
to provide a wireless access point to the personal wireless
network; and a processor configured to receive a digital credential
identifying the at least one media player device via the data
interface, wherein the digital credential is issued by an
authenticator service accessible via a wide area network separate
from the personal wireless network, to store the digital credential
received from the authenticator service, to receive subsequent
connection requests comprising digital credentials from the at
least one media player device via the personal wireless network
and, in response to the subsequent connection requests, to deliver
the transcoded video content to the at least one media player
device via the personal wireless network if the digital credentials
received from the at least one media player device via the personal
wireless network match the digital credentials previously received
from the authenticator service via the wide area network, and
otherwise not delivering the transcoded video content to the at
least one media player device via the personal wireless
network.
2. The portable device of claim 1 wherein the processor is further
configured to determine that the at least one media player device
is authorized to receive the transcoded video content prior to
providing the video streams.
3. The portable device of claim 2 wherein the processor determines
that the at least one media player is authorized to receive the
transcoded video content by comparing information provided by the
at least one media player to information previously stored by the
portable device.
4. The portable device of claim 1 wherein the transcoded video
content is encrypted prior to storage on the portable device, and
wherein the processor is further configured to decrypt the
transcoded video content prior to delivering the transcoded video
content to the at least one media player.
5. The portable device of claim 1 wherein the personal wireless
network is an IEEE 802.11 network hosted by the portable
device.
6. The portable device of claim 1 wherein the portable device is
configured to issue addresses on the personal wireless network to
the at least one media player device.
7. The portable device of claim 1 wherein the format that is
suitable for delivery to the at least one media player is a
streaming video format.
8. The portable device of claim 7 wherein the portable device is
configured to simultaneously deliver multiple video streams of the
transcoded video content to multiple media player devices via the
personal wireless network.
9. The portable device of claim 1 further comprising a battery
configured to provide electrical power to the data storage, the
wireless network interface and the processor during delivery of the
video content to the at least one media player.
10. A method executable by a portable video storage device to
deliver video content to a media player, the method comprising:
receiving a digital credential from an authentication service at
the portable video storage device via a first digital network,
wherein the digital credential identifies the media player; storing
transcoded video content in a data storage of the portable video
storage device; providing a wireless access point to a personal
wireless network by the portable video storage device, wherein the
personal wireless network is separate from the first digital
network; receiving a connection request from the media player at
the portable video storage device via the personal wireless
network, wherein the connection request comprises the digital
credential identifying the media player; and if the digital
credential received from the media player via the personal wireless
network matches the digital credential previously received from the
authentication service via the first digital network, the portable
video storage device providing the transcoded video content from
the portable video storage device to the media player device via
the personal wireless network, and otherwise not providing the
transcoded video content via the personal wireless network. ii. The
method of claim 10 further comprising transcoding received video
content in a format that is suitable for delivery to the media
player over the personal wireless network.
12. The method of claim 10 wherein the transcoded video content is
encrypted prior to storage on the portable video storage device,
and further comprising decrypting the transcoded video content
prior to delivering the transcoded video content to the media
player.
13. The method of claim 10 further comprising the portable video
storage device issuing an address on the personal wireless network
to the media player device if the media player device is authorized
to receive the transcoded video content, and otherwise not issuing
an address on the personal wireless network to the media player
device.
14. The method of claim 13 wherein the transcoded video content is
received in a streaming video format, and wherein providing
comprises simultaneously delivering multiple video streams of the
transcoded video content to multiple media player devices via the
personal wireless network.
15. A portable device to deliver video streams to at least one
media player device, the portable device comprising: a data
interface; a data storage configured to store video content that is
transcoded in a video streaming format; a wireless network
interface configured to provide a wireless access point to the
personal wireless network; and a processor configured to receive a
digital credential identifying the at least one media player device
via the data interface, wherein the digital credential is issued by
an authenticator service accessible via a wide area network
separate from the personal wireless network, to store the digital
credential received from the authenticator service, to receive
subsequent connection requests comprising digital credentials from
the at least one media player device via the personal wireless
network, to verify that the at least one media player device is
authorized to receive the transcoded video content by comparing the
digital credentials received from the at least one media player via
the personal wireless network to the digital credentials previously
received from the authenticator service via the data interface,
and, if the at least one media player device is authorized, to
deliver the transcoded video content to the at least one media
player device via the personal wireless network, and otherwise not
delivering the transcoded video content to the at least one media
player device via the personal wireless network.
16. The portable device of claim 15 wherein the data interface is
an interface to a transcoder that transcodes the video content into
the video streaming format.
17. The portable device of claim 16 wherein the data interface is a
universal serial bus (USB) interface that supplies data and
electrical power to the portable device.
18. The portable device of claim 17 wherein the processor verifies
that the at least one media player device is authorized to receive
the transcoded video content even though a connection to the
authenticator service is no longer available.
19. The portable device of claim 15 further comprising a battery
configured to provide electrical power to the data storage, the
wireless network interface and the processor during delivery of the
video content to the at least one media player.
20. The portable device of claim 15 wherein the portable device is
configured to simultaneously deliver multiple video streams of the
transcoded video content to multiple media player devices via the
personal wireless network.
Description
PRIORITY CLAIM
[0001] This application is a continuation U.S. patent application
Ser. No. 15/221,922 which was filed on Jul. 28, 2016, which is a
continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/057,390, which
was filed on Mar. 1, 2016. That application is a continuation of
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/266,232, which was filed on
Apr. 30, 2014.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The present disclosure generally relates to storage and
delivery of personal video content. More particularly, the
following discussion relates to devices, methods and systems that
provide portable storage and wireless retrieval of personal video
content.
BACKGROUND
[0003] Television viewers are no longer confined to their home
television sets. With the advent of time and place shifting
techniques, viewers can now view their favorite television programs
and other media content at virtually any time and from virtually
any place. Personal video recorders (PVRs) and other time shifting
devices are becoming increasingly ubiquitous. Additionally, many
television viewers now use placeshifting devices to stream their
television programs to mobile phones, tablets, personal computers,
personal digital assistants, game players and/or other devices
other than traditional television sets. Modern television viewers
now expect to watch television at times and in places that were not
previously thought possible.
[0004] As television viewing becomes increasingly mobile, various
challenges can be encountered. For example, many portable media
players lack sufficient storage capacity to store all of the media
content that a user may want to watch. Video content can quickly
consume a large amount of storage, so most users have to choose a
relatively small amount of video content to carry in their phone,
tablet or other personal device at any particular time. The limited
storage severely restricts the choice of content that is available
when the user is away from home, and it also requires relatively
frequent updates to maintain a fresh store of unwatched
content.
[0005] Placeshifting or other media streaming over telephone or
data networks can improve the availability of content, but
streaming may be very difficult in some locations (e.g., in
aircraft, vehicles or other remote locations where networks are
unavailable, or in hotels or other busy areas where networks are
too overloaded to provide adequate bandwidth for video streaming).
Even when adequate networks are available, video streams can
consume a relatively large amount of bandwidth, thereby limiting
the quality of the received stream and/or potentially incurring
substantial cost to transfer an entire program. Moreover, it is
important to protect the intellectual property rights of content
owners even as the content is being viewed in non-traditional
places and times.
[0006] It is therefore desirable to create systems, devices and
methods for providing a variety of streaming media content to
portable devices in a convenient yet secure manner. These and other
desirable features and characteristics will become apparent from
the subsequent detailed description and the appended claims, taken
in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and this background
section.
BRIEF SUMMARY
[0007] Various exemplary embodiments provide systems, devices and
methods to provide convenient yet effective portable media
streaming. In various embodiments, a portable device suitably
comprises a network video transcoder, data storage and a network
server interface for providing a personal local area network (LAN).
The transcoder receives video programs from personal computers,
television receivers, set top boxes, online media services and/or
other sources and encodes/transcodes the received content into a
format that is suitable for streaming over the personal LAN. The
personal LAN may be a wireless network that is hosted by the
portable storage device to allow subsequent video streaming of the
previously-stored transcoded content to one or more client devices.
The security of stored content can be protected through
authentication, periodic check-ins, and/or other techniques as
appropriate.
[0008] More particularly, some embodiments provide a portable
device to deliver video streams to at least one media player device
suitably comprising a transcoder, a data storage, a wireless
network interface, and a processor. The transcoder is configured to
receive video content and to transcode the received video content
into a format that is suitable for delivery to the at least one
media player over a personal wireless network. The data storage is
configured to store the transcoded video content, and the wireless
network interface is configured to provide a wireless access point
to the personal wireless network. The processor is configured to
receive connection requests from the at least one media player
device via the personal wireless network and to deliver the
transcoded video content to the at least one media player device
via the personal wireless network.
[0009] Other embodiments provide methods executable by a portable
video storage device to deliver video content to a media player.
The method suitably comprises receiving a digital credential from
an authentication service at the portable video storage device,
wherein the digital credential identifies the media player; storing
transcoded video content in a data storage of the portable video
storage device; providing a wireless access point to a personal
wireless network by the portable video storage device; receiving a
connection request from the media player at the portable video
storage device via the personal wireless network, wherein the
connection request comprises the digital credential identifying the
media player; and if the digital credential received from the media
player matches the digital credential received from the
authentication service, the portable video storage device providing
the transcoded video content from the portable video storage device
to the media player device via the personal wireless network.
[0010] Still other embodiments provide a portable device that
interfaces with a video transcoder to deliver video streams to at
least one media player device. The portable device suitably
comprises a memory, hard drive or other data storage, a Wi-Fi or
other wireless network interface, and a processor. The data storage
is configured to store transcoded video content, and the wireless
network interface is configured to provide a wireless access point
to the personal wireless network. The processor is configured to
receive connection requests from the at least one media player
device via the personal wireless network and to deliver the
transcoded video content to the at least one media player device
via the personal wireless network.
[0011] These examples and other embodiments, aspects and features
are described in detail below.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES
[0012] Exemplary embodiments will hereinafter be described in
conjunction with the following drawing figures, wherein like
numerals denote like elements, and
[0013] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an example system for providing
personal video streaming with a portable storage device; and
[0014] FIG. 2 is a flowchart of an example method to provide
personal video streaming with a portable storage device.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0015] The following detailed description of the invention is
merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the
invention or the application and uses of the invention.
Furthermore, there is no intention to be bound by any theory
presented in the preceding background or the following detailed
description.
[0016] According to various embodiments, a portable video delivery
device includes data storage, a secure processor, and a wireless
network interface that acts as an access point for a personal
wireless network. Transcoded media files are stored in the data
storage so that the portable device maintains a relatively large
library of stored media programs that can be carried along with the
user during commuting, travel and/or other activities. To playback
the stored programming, other media player devices (e.g., mobile
telephones, media players, video game players, tablet computers,
personal computers and/or the like) use the personal wireless
network to connect to the portable device and to obtain
previously-transcoded content from the data storage of the device.
The content may be provided in a streaming format, as a side-loaded
data file, and/or in any other format as desired. Further
implementations may implement data security to prevent further
duplication and unauthorized use of the programming stored on the
portable device. Parental controls and other features may also be
provided.
[0017] The portable device therefore provides storage of a
relatively large amount of transcoded video content as well as
wireless retrieval of the video content to one or more video
playback devices. This wireless retrieval may allow, in some
embodiments, multiple playback devices to simultaneously receive
separate video streams of different stored programs. If a family
was travelling together in a car, plane or other vehicle, for
example, each member of the family could simultaneously obtain a
personal video stream of a different program stored on the portable
device, even if a streaming connection to the Internet or another
network was not readily available. The portable device therefore
provides many of the benefits of a network-based streaming service,
but with fewer bandwidth and access constraints.
[0018] At least two variants of a portable storage device are
described herein. In the first variant, the portable device
includes an encoder or transcoder within a common chassis or
housing as the data storage and wireless interface. The transcoder
suitably receives video content from computers, television
receivers, network services and/or the like. The video content is
converted into a suitable format for later streaming or
side-loading prior to storage so that the converted content can
later be retrieved and played back.
[0019] In the second variant, the portable device does not
necessarily include transcoding hardware itself, but rather
interfaces with a separate encoder or transcoder device to receive
transcoded programming that can be stored and transported for later
viewing. In this variant, the portable device interfaces with a
transcoder provided within a set top box, television receiver,
placeshifting device, digital video recorder (DVR) and/or the like,
or in a standalone network transcoding device that receives video
content from other sources. The properly formatted video is
provided to the portable device via a suitable interface so that
the transcoding hardware need not be carried along with the
portable device, thereby reducing the size, complexity and power
consumption of the portable device. In various embodiments, the
security of the content can be preserved by authenticating the
portable device and/or the users' media players to the transcoder
and/or to a suitable authentication service, as desired. Other
variations and equivalent embodiments could be formulated, many of
which are described below.
[0020] Turning now to the drawing figures and with initial
reference to FIG. 1, an example of a system 100 for processing
video content for portable storage and playback suitably includes a
media storage device 102 that receives video content, stores
transcoded content in a data storage 137, and that provides a
personal wireless network 158 via a network interface 138. Device
102 may interact with an authentication service 107 on network 108
or elsewhere to maintain the security of system 100, as described
more fully below.
[0021] In the example illustrated in FIG. 1, device 102 suitably
includes a transcoder portion 120 and a storage portion 130. As
noted above, some variants of device 102 may include a transcoder
122 that transcodes received video content for subsequent streaming
and/or file transfer ("side loading") to one or more media players
150A-B via personal network 158. Other variants may provide the
functions of transcoder portion 120 within a separate device, such
as a television receiver, STB, placeshifting device, DVR,
standalone network transcoder device and/or the like.
[0022] The storage portion 130 of portable device 102 suitably
includes a processor 132, data storage 137, and a wireless network
interface 138. Data storage 137 may be any sort of solid state,
magnetic, optical or other data storage capable of storing
transcoded video programs 142. Data storage 137 may be implemented
using one or more flash memories, SDRAMs, hard disk drives and/or
the like, to provide just a few examples. Some embodiments may
incorporate removable storage, such as microSD, miniSD, or other
memory cards, as desired.
[0023] Wireless network interface 138 suitably includes an antenna
and other appropriate hardware and software to host a personal
local area network 158. In various embodiments, personal network
158 is an IEEE 802.11 ("Wi-Fi") network that can be readily joined
by any number of conventional computers, phones, tablets, media
players and/or other devices. The network may be password
protected, encrypted and/or otherwise secured to protect against
unauthorized access. In various embodiments, personal LAN 158 is
primarily used to provide video content from device 102 to client
devices 150A-B. It may not be necessary that LAN 158 have access to
the Internet or any external networks to support video transfers;
indeed, device 102 may be of convenient use in vehicles or in other
settings where WAN access might not be readily available.
[0024] Processor 132 provides a storage manager function 134, a
data server function 135, and control functions as appropriate. In
various embodiments, each function 134 and 135 is implemented in
software or firmware stored in memory and executed by processor
132. Various embodiments implement processor 132 and its various
functions 134, 135 using a system-on-a-chip (SOC) processor that
includes appropriate processing circuitry, memory and input/output
features as needed. Processor 132 may be a secure processor that
includes encrypted memory portions (e.g., using AES-128 or similar
encryption) to protect against hacking or reverse engineering.
Other embodiments may provide equivalent functions in a
conventional microprocessor, microcontroller, digital signal
processor, ASIC, programmable logic array and/or other hardware, as
desired.
[0025] Electric power for processor 132, storage 137 and network
interface 138 may be provided in any manner. In various
embodiments, a battery 131 is provided to facilitate operation in
vehicles, while commuting and/or in other settings where
electricity may not be conveniently available. Other embodiments
may receive electrical power through a conventional power source
(e.g., a power supply that receives electricity from a conventional
AC outlet or the like).
[0026] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the portable storage
portion 130 receives electrical power through a detachable
interface 125 to transcoder portion 120. Interface 125 may be, for
example, a universal serial bus (USB) connector, LIGHTNING
connector, or the like that provides interfaces 126 and 127 for
providing data and electricity (respectively) to storage portion
130, as appropriate. In this example, electrical power received via
interface 127 could recharge battery 131 as needed, and/or
supplement power supplied by battery 131. Interface 127 could also
supply electrical power from an external power source such as an
electrical outlet, a USB battery, a USB slot of a personal computer
or the like if transcoder portion 120 is not available, as desired.
As noted above, some implementations may provide transcode portion
120 and storage portion 130 in a common unit; in such embodiments,
there would be no need to physically separate portions 120 and 130
from each other, so interface 125 may not be needed. Alternatively
interface 125 may be a conventional data bus that transfers data
from transcoder 122 for storage in portion 130, but that may not
supply electrical power between portions 120 and 130.
[0027] Transcoder portion 120 suitably includes a transcoding
processor 122 and a network interface 121 to a home or other local
area network 104. In the example shown in FIG. 1, interface 121 is
an IEEE 802.3 interface to a conventional ETHERNET network;
equivalent embodiments may use other interfaces, including WI-FI or
other wireless interfaces as desired. In some implementations,
interface 121 may be eliminated or combined with wireless interface
138 in any manner.
[0028] Transcoding processor 122 is any processing hardware and
software capable of transcoding media programming into a digital
format that can be delivered via personal network 158. Different
embodiments may support any number of different formats, including
any formats for streaming or side-loading, as desired. In various
embodiments, transcoding techniques generally used for
placeshifting could be applied. Unlike placeshifting techniques
that adapt the transcoding of the media stream in response to
then-current network conditions, however, suitable default
transcoding parameters may be selected in many settings to reflect
that network 158 is more predictable that most connections that
support traditional placeshifting, and to reflect that transcoding
occurs prior to streaming in this instance. Transcoding may
nevertheless involve converting the received media content from
formats typically associated with DBS, cable, terrestrial
broadcasts (e.g., MPEG) and/or formats typically used for storage
in a DVR or the like into a format that is suitable for streaming
on a digital network. Such conversion may involve translation from
one digital encoding format to another, as well as any appropriate
compression and/or encryption to preserve the security of the
underlying content. Other actions may be additionally or
alternately performed as part of the transcoding function.
[0029] Various embodiments of transcoder 120 may include storage
124 for storing pre-encoded video programs 141 and/or transcoded
video programs 142 as desired. Programming content to be transcoded
may be manually or automatically obtained from any number of
content sources 105A-C that are accessible via interface 121. In
the example of FIG. 1, content source 105A is a television receiver
with a DVR that stores programs recorded by the user, and content
source 105B is a personal computer with a hard drive that includes
stored media programs. Both content sources 105A-B may execute
software applications that interact with transcoding portion 120 to
manually and/or automatically transfer content over network 104 for
transcoding. Content may also be received from a video-on-demand
(VOD), remote storage digital video recorder (RSDVR), or other
source 105C accessible via the Internet or another wide area
network 108.
[0030] Un-transcoded programs 141 obtained from content sources
105A-C may be temporarily stored in storage 124 prior to
transcoding. After transcoding, the transcoded video content 142
may be temporarily stored in storage 124 if storage portion 130 is
detached or otherwise not immediately available. When storage
portion 130 is in contact with transcoder portion 120, transcoded
media content is transferred via interface 125 to transcoder
portion for storage in data storage 137.
[0031] The storage manager 134 manages the transcoded programming
142 stored in storage 137. In various embodiments, storage manager
134 maintains a list 143 of all of the stored programs 142. This
list 143 can be supplied to media player client applications 152 to
provide a directory of programs available for retrieval or
streaming via network 158, as described more fully below.
[0032] In some implementations, a secure processor 132 of storage
portion 130 authenticates with transcoder 122 and/or authentication
service 107 on a repeating basis (e.g., daily, monthly, etc.) to
maintain the integrity of system 100. Client applications 152
executing on media players 150A-B may also authenticate with
processor 132, transcoder 122 and/or authentication service 107, as
described more fully below.
[0033] In operation, then, storage manager 134 directs the storage
of transcoded program files 142 on storage 137 and data server 135
provides access to stored files 142 via network 158. In various
embodiments, data server 135 is based upon conventional hypertext
transport protocol (HTTP) constructs similar to a conventional web
server. This allows client applications 152 to request file list
143, to select programs available from the list, and to receive
streams or files that include the requested programming via the
personal network 158.
[0034] The security and integrity of system 100 may be protected in
any number of different ways. As noted above, processor 132 may
include encrypted memory regions to protect against reverse
engineering and discovery of encryption keys or other secure data.
Transcoded content 143 may be secured with digital rights
management (DRM) or persistent rights management (PRM) such as the
MEDIAACCESS PRM product available from Nagra Kudelski of
Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Switzerland, although other cryptography,
DRM or PRM products could be used in any number of equivalent
embodiments. Further embodiments could require the registration of
client applications 152, users and/or client devices 150A-B with
transcoder 122 and/or authentication service 107 prior to use.
Storage portion 130 could disable access to programs 142 after some
period of time (e.g., several weeks to a month, as desired) unless
the storage portion 130 re-authenticates with transcoder 122 and/or
authorization service 107 to prevent portion 130 from becoming a
medium of content transfer. Further, access to the personal network
158 may be limited to an appropriate number of simultaneous users,
each of whom may register with a password to prevent unfettered
access to content 142 on storage 137. Other embodiments may provide
alternate or additional features, as desired.
[0035] Referring now to FIG. 2, an exemplary process 200 to
securely deliver transcoded media files to one or more media player
clients suitably includes the broad steps of selecting media
content (function 207), obtaining and transcoding the selected
content (functions 214 and 216), storing the transcoded media files
142 in storage 137 (function 224), providing a personal network 158
from the portable storage device 130 (function 230), and securely
providing requested program content to media players 150 via
personal network 158 (function 240). These basic functions may be
supplemented as desired to improve security, functionality and
convenience to the user as desired.
[0036] As noted above, many embodiments will restrict access to
stored content 142 by ensuring that media player clients 150 are
authorized to receive content. To that end, portable device 130
and/or each media player 150 receiving content 142 from device 130
will typically register with an authentication authority 107
(functions 201, 202). In various embodiments, the authentication
authority 107 could be an Internet or other network service
operated by a media content provider or other service provider. In
other embodiments, however, the authentication authority 107 may be
incorporated into a set top box, network device and/or other
content source 105, provided that the device providing the
authority 107 is built with adequately secure hardware and software
to prevent unauthorized access or tampering. In the illustrated
embodiment, media player 150 registers with the portable device 130
(function 202), which then forwards the registration request to the
authentication authority 107 (function 203) for approval. In some
implementations, registrations 201, 203 occur when the portable
device 130 is connected to the transcoding device 120; in other
embodiments, storage device 130 contacts the authentication
authority 107 directly, as desired.
[0037] Authentication authority 107 verifies that the user, media
player 150 and/or storage device 130 are approved to receive
content 142. If so, the authority 107 issues an approval 204 that
can be stored in secure storage of the portable device 130
(function 205). Portable device 130 will typically store a copy of
a player ID or other credential that is uniquely associated with
each approved media player 150, and will forward a copy of the
credential to the player itself for use in subsequent
authentication (function 206). Credential 211 may include digital
cryptographic data generated by the portable device 130, by
transcoder 120, by media player 150 itself, by authentication
service 107, and/or by any combination of these sources.
Credentials assigned to storage device 130 and/or media players 150
may be renewed on any temporal basis (e.g., weekly, monthly, etc.)
if desired to prevent improper use of content stored on storage
device 130. Re-authentication of storage device 130 and/or media
players 150 with authorization service 107 from time-to-time can
prevent unauthorized long-term transfers of content stored on the
device 130, if desired.
[0038] Content stored on portable device 130 may be selected in any
manner. In various embodiments, one or more users select content
for storage on device 130 using an authenticated media player 150
(function 207). In such embodiments, content available from one or
more program sources 105 may be listed for the user, who is then
able to select specific contents for transcoding and storage on
device 130. The program list may be provided via an electronic
program guide (EPG) or similar listing available from a network
service, from one or more content sources 105, and/or from any
other source. In various embodiments, a client application
executing on media player 150 displays program guide data and other
listings of available programming for placeshifting, recording,
viewing or other functions. The user is allowed to select one or
more programs and, using any suitable interface features, to direct
that the selected program be transcoded and stored on the portable
device 130 (function 208). In such embodiments, a network service
(e.g., service 107 or another service on network 108) receives the
program selection from media player 150 and directs content source
105 to deliver the selected program to transcoder 120 for storage
on device 130. In other embodiments, the media player 150
communicates directly with a set top box, DVR or other content
source 105 to select and retrieve programs for transcoding and
storage.
[0039] Transcoder 120 therefore discovers and obtains media content
from one or more content sources 105 using any appropriate
techniques (function 212). Rather than receiving programs selected
by a user, for example, some implementations could alternately or
additionally allow transcoder 120 to automatically communicate with
the various content sources 105 to identify and transfer some or
all of the programming available from that device (function 214).
That is, the transcoder 120 could use any process or algorithm to
automatically select content to store on device 130, as desired.
The content discovery and delivery process may be automated in any
manner and/or users may manually direct the transfer of programs to
for transcoding and storage in any other manner, as desired.
[0040] Transcoding of received media content (function 216)
suitably involves placing the content in an appropriate digital
format for storage and retrieval as described herein. In various
embodiments, transcoding may involve compressing broadcast or
downloaded video data, converting to video formats that are
compatible with media players 150 and/or personal network 158,
encrypting the video prior to storage, and/or other functions as
desired.
[0041] In some embodiments, storage device 130 authenticates with
the transcoder 120 prior to receiving the transcoded content 142
(function 218). This authentication may involve providing a digital
code or other identifier as desired. Transcoder 120 may confirm the
authorization with authentication system 107, if desired (function
220, 221). Authentication may not be required prior to every video
transfer, but regular re-authentication of the portable device 130
can prevent the device 130 from becoming a medium of content
transfer in some embodiments.
[0042] If the authentication is successful, then transcoder 120
provides the transcoded video content to portable device 160
(function 222). Transcoder 120 also provides any cryptographic keys
or other data necessary for processing DRM/PRM of the transcoded
programs 142. Keys may be stored in a secure memory associated with
processor 132, as appropriate. Transcoded programs 142 are placed
in storage 137 for transport and subsequent retrieval, as
appropriate (function 224).
[0043] When the portable device 130 is in use, it suitably provides
its own Wi-Fi zone or other appropriate personal wireless network
158, as described above (function 230). In various embodiments,
portable device 130 acts as a wireless access point (WAP) or other
host that serves data to one or more media players 150 via a
private wireless network 158 that is restricted to authorized media
players 150. To that end, media players 150 suitably request access
to the personal network 158 (function 232), and portable device 130
provides network addresses or other credentials necessary for
participation in personal network 158 (function 233). In various
embodiments, media players 150 provide passwords or other
credentials prior to receiving access to the private network 158.
Credentials may include the player ID previously received from the
portable device 130 during the earlier registration. In such
embodiments, portable device 130 may compare the received
credentials with the stored credentials to perform an off-line
authentication of the media player 150 even when authentication
server 107 is not available (function 235). Portable device 130 may
restrict the total number of media players 150 that have
simultaneous access to the personal network 158, as desired, to
prohibit mis-use of content stored on the device 130 or for other
purposes. Portable device 130 may also reject media players 150
that have outdated credentials. By requiring media players 150 to
refresh their credentials with the authentication authority 107
from time to time, additional forms of mis-use can be
prevented.
[0044] The media player 150 requests the content list 143 (function
234) that describes the transcoded programs 142 held in storage 137
(function 236). The user appropriately selects a program 142 to
view (function 238), and the selected program is provided to the
media player 150 over personal network 258 in an appropriate manner
(function 240). As noted above, different embodiments could deliver
the selected program 142 as a media stream, as a side-loaded file
transfer, or in any other manner. As noted above, a portable device
130 could readily provide separate video feeds to multiple
simultaneous users. This could allow, for example, multiple family
members to simultaneously watch separate programs on their own
media players 150.
[0045] The various security mechanisms shown in FIG. 2 can be used
to preserve the integrity of transcoded programs delivered to the
media player. In contrast to conventional file sharing systems in
which media files are simply stored without restriction, various
embodiments use digital credentials to securely provide stored
programs only to those media players that have been previously
authenticated and approved to receive such data. Additional
embodiments could further enhance the security of the system by
requiring the portable device 130 and/or media players 150 to
periodically renew their credentials, by limiting the number of
media players 150 that are able to access the storage device, to
limit the number of simultaneous connections to private network
158, and/or by taking other actions as appropriate. Through the use
of digital cryptography and/or other access controls, content
stored on device 130 may be limited to playback on one or more
media players 150, or certain programs may be associated with
certain players while other programs remain accessible by other
players 150. Further, the storage device 130 could be uniquely
associated with a particular transcoder 120 and/or data source 105,
as desired. Still other embodiments could require that the storage
device 130 be interfaced with transcoding device 120 and/or content
source 105 while authentication of the storage device 130 and/or
one or more media players 150 takes place. Additional or other
constraints may be imposed to further enhance the security of the
system as desired.
[0046] Although FIG. 2 and the discussion herein often refers to
the "transcoding portion 120" and the "storage portion 130" as
separate devices, other embodiments could combine the transcoder
and storage portions within a common housing or chassis to make a
portable transcoder device with delivery capabilities, as noted at
the outset. Other embodiments will implement the storage function
130 in a separate device that cooperates with an transcoder 122
provided in a set top box, television receiver, placeshifting
device, video recording device, standalone network transcoder
and/or the like. Many different variations could be formulated in a
wide array of equivalent embodiments.
[0047] The term "exemplary" is used herein to represent one
example, instance or illustration that may have any number of
equivalent alternatives. Any implementation described herein as
"exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or
advantageous over other possible implementations. While several
example embodiments have been presented in the foregoing detailed
description, it should be appreciated that a vast number of
alternate but equivalent variations exist, and the examples
presented herein are not intended to limit the scope,
applicability, or configuration of the invention in any way. To the
contrary, various changes may be made in the function and
arrangement of elements described without departing from the scope
of the claims and their legal equivalents.
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